Caution Thrown To The Wind
by Xx SadoMasochist xX
Summary: L finds the Deathnote after Raito gives it up, becoming the new Kira. But, having that intense power suddenly coming into his hands, he realizes his heart is much darker than Raito’s could ever be- and he loves it. Hints at L x Raito.
1. I Prologue

Caution Thrown To The Wind

_**Author's Note: I got to thinking- What if L-kun got the death note at some point? This is the result- the prologue of a story I plan to be updating as fast as the ideas come. I'm going to have fun with this- especially since I cosplay as L. It'll be weird thinking of him as Kira. This is my first chaptered Death Note fiction, so please don't flame. It will hint at Raito x L slash.**_

_**I don't own Death Note, or ever will.**_

**Caution Thrown To The Wind.**

I. Prologue.

I didn't mean for this to happen. I didn't mean to taste the bitter, tangy rush of adrenaline as it coursed through the metallic liquid in my veins. I didn't want to watch the guilt fall from the Yagami boy's eyes, innocence sliding smoothly into place; just to find the damned note that brought Ryuk to my side. I didn't mean to let my curiosity overtake me, the power of being able to kill with the stroke of a pen- so much mightier than the sword.

And the NPA, so naïve… So slow; so pathetically, pathetically simple. I'm playing with school children. Raito is putty in my hands; hell, if I asked, the entire NPA would off themselves without my black ink even touching the beige paper. I am L… I am power, I am justice… I am _Kira._

Yes, I have half of the world bowing down to me; and yet, I think I should start at the beginning. Before I knew the taste of true _success…_ before I knew that Yagami Raito was in fact not Kira. When I was the innocent one; so naïve to the fact that just one _name with a stroke of a pen _could bring such sweet, sweet satisfaction. And before when I thought I was _right_ to stop Kira.

But I was oh, so wrong. And I was oh, so naïve. To think that the best way to deal with a criminal is to let them rot behind bars is just unthinkably dense. But I have seen the truth- the lie which, when revealed, is so unspeakably see-through. And so, I'll start at the beginning, to show how unthinkably _stupid_ I was before I saw the, pardon the pun, _Light._

Join me on my journey, and learn to bow before me as the new regime of Kira is unraveled before your eyes.


	2. II The Beginning

Caution Thrown To The Wind

_**Author's Note: A lot of the dialogue should seem familiar…it's taken from a scene out of the first volume of the manga.**_

_**Once again, if I owned Death Note, then I'd hardly be writing this story.**_

**Caution Thrown To The Wind.**

II. The Beginning.

Simply put, I was curious. Curiosity killed the cat, you know, and the saying rang through my mind before I even entertained the idea of asking the United Nations to join the case. Sitting at my computer and muttering a simple request to Watari, (Watari, can you please bring me some tea? And a cake?) I had been looking up the current information to the case and mulling over things in my head. "Kira… interesting."

Once Watari came back with my cake and tea, I nodded towards the computer. "Watari, if you can, please connect me to the Interpol headquarters, I think I find this rather intriguing."

Instantly the commotion in the room filled my ears as the Interpol panicked, and I once again nodded my silent thanks towards Watari. Watari smiled towards me, and saying kindly towards me (He always viewed me as a son) "I'll be down there in five minutes, Sir."

I nodded again, silently listening to the arguments as Watari left the room. "Only a matter of time, Kira," I mused, chewing on my thumbnail. "Before you are brought down. The higher the pedestal, the harder you fall."

I smirked, closing my eyes and waiting patiently for the arguments to stop. And, when they did, I heard a gasp. "Watari…"

And so I opened my eyes. I knew Watari as well as I knew the back of my hand, and, knowing him, he was decked from head to toe in mysterious, yet cliché, detective's clothing. "Silence, please. You will now hear L speak."

The phrase rang through my ears and I prepared myself for the conversation, never been one to relish the social side of life. I heard the soft _click_ of my microphone coming live and cleared my throat. "Good afternoon. This is L."

I paused, mainly for effect, and to quickly gather a decent speech together. Thinking back, I must've sounded like the hope of the century for the sad, failing justice system. "The case before us is unprecedented in scope and difficulty… and is a monstrous crime of mass murder that needs to be stopped at all costs! In order to solve it, I request the full cooperation of police worldwide, with a resolution to that effect passed at the Interpol meeting today."

I smirked, knowing my voice was calm and collected as always. Knowing I had complete power over the police. Maybe, back then, I was so much more like Kira than I thought.

Besides that matter, I had deduced that Kira was in Japan by the killings he had committed, his targets all or mostly in Japan. My line of thought was cut off by Watari's voice. "L… Interpol has passed a resolution promising you their full cooperation."

I had resisted the urge to laugh. Of course the Interpol resolved to work with me- as I said before, I'm toying with school children. And my line of though was not so much different before hand, only I suppose it was less cruel by my old standards. "Good. I strongly ask the cooperation of the Japanese Task Force, in particular."

I heard surprised shouts from the other end of the connection. If they had simply been watching the news, they would've come to the same conclusion I had. But, once again, they're so pathetically _simple._ Back when I was naïve I had always wondered what it would be like if Wammy's house would supply the world of police men and thinkers- and if it would be a better place with such brilliant minds on every case. But I digress- back to the story of the beginning.

I allowed myself the satisfaction of taking a sip of my cold tea before explaining my words. "Whether it is carried out by a group or an individual, it is highly probable that they're Japanese. And if not Japanese, they are in Japan."

Startled and somewhat angry cries came from the other end, and I cut them all off, growing impatient and tired of talking. "Why Japan?"

I cleared my throat again, cracking my knuckles and continuing. "I think… I'll be able to show you very soon, in a direct confrontation with the killer. I therefore request that this investigation be headquartered in Japan."

And so, the Lind L. Tailor news cast was aired the next day. Lind L. Tailor, a criminal off of death row- what did he have to lose? He was used as a decoy in a broadcast on the news, taunting and hitting nerves with Kira. And, as expected, he had died. And so the games began. Watari connected me to the news station and I began to taunt Kira myself. I don't quite remember what I was trying to accomplish, but all the same, I taunted. "I… don't believe it."

I paused, for effect. "This was just an experiment to test a hunch I had, but I never really thought... Kira, you can actually kill people without direct contact… Listen to me, Kira. If you just killed Lind L. Tailor, the man who you saw on your TV, he was a condemned criminal, due to die at this hour. That wasn't me. His arrest and conviction were kept silent from the media, and went unreported even on the net. Even you had no way of knowing about him, it seems. But I, L, do in fact exist. So come on, Kira! Kill me if you can!"

I paused, smirking. I had already deduced that Kira needed a name and a face to kill at that point. After all, all of the criminals who died were people who were both shown and had their names given when they were killed. As I said, I was simply taunting. I suppose I was trying to convince the police of my theory. But, why would a master have to convince lap dogs? "What are you waiting for? Come on. I'm still here. Go ahead and kill me. Can't do it, Kira?"

I waited another minute, holding my stone-still expression even though I wanted to laugh madly. I was winning, and I always win. It doesn't matter the cost. "Evidently, you _aren't _able to kill me."

I held back another howl of laughter as I continued to rub it in Kira's face that I knew _exactly_ where he was. "Now I'll give _you_ some information in return. Although it was announced that this was being televised globally… Actually, it was only televised in the Kanto region around Tokyo. The plan was to broadcast live in other areas in turn, but that is no longer necessary. You are in the Kanto region of Japan, Kira. And, although the police missed this, your first victim was the Shinjuku killer who took eight people hostage in a nursery school. His crime, compared to those of the notorious murderers who've died from heart attacks, was not very serious. Moreover, this case was reported only in Japan no where else… that was all the information I needed. I knew, Kira, that you were in Japan! And that your first victim was just a guinea pig to test your powers! We broadcasted first to Kanto because it has the largest regional population in the country. The fact that you happened to be there was just pure luck."

I could imagine the resounding shouts of Kira. (_What?! Damn! This can't be happening!_) I had first thought that Kira was a simpleton; out only for self-aggrandizement. And so I dealt another blow with my words. After all, the pen _is_ mightier than the sword, so to speak. "I didn't expect this to work so perfectly according to plan, but… Now, I daresay it won't be long before I send you to die. Kira, it would greatly interest me to know_how_ you carry out your murders, but that's something I can find out… _After_ I catch you! Kira… I'm going to find you and dispose of you if it's the last thing I do! I'm righteous! Until we meet again, Kira…"

And so, I disconnected the connection. I actually laugh when I look back, seeing how set I was on bringing Kira to his end. What a grand turn of events, this has been. The games had begun with Raito-kun as the bad guy, but the tables have turned. It seems to me that the bad guys _ always_ win.


	3. III Laughter

Caution Thrown To The Wind

_**Author's Note: I'm not dead! I promise! Haha. I was stuck in the woods for a camping trip, so I had no way to update. But I have an update now, so, I hope you all enjoy!**_

_**I try hard with this story, so thanks to all that have reviewed and favorited. This chapter's dedicated to you.**_

_**WARNING!**__** L's real name is in this chapter. But then again, probably everyone knows it by now…**_

**Caution Thrown To The Wind.**

III. Laughter

The time of innocence wore on, my cockiness only outdone by my outrageously convincing act of being an emotionless droid. The Task Force was formed, and the members and I began meeting in hotel rooms to talk out the case and plan our next move. Things were going exactly as planned. Soon, the chief detective Yagami Soichiro, mentioned his son. "My son, Raito, is the top of his class. He is considered a genius, Ryuzaki. Maybe he could help with the case."

The information also given to me on Yagami Raito made my curiosity awake again, like a sleeping lion that needed to be fed. I quickly came up with an alias and a plan to meet the detective's son, my thought process pointing to him as the obvious Kira. "Detective Yagami, I'm afraid your son is now a suspect."

I explained the plan carefully to the task force, my lips fighting the twitch that came from suppressing a confident smile. And, as my plan was voiced to these simple, simple children, Hideki Ryuga, my college alias was formed. Light passed the entrance exam with top marks, as did I. Eyes were on me constantly as I failed to look the definition of 'normal.'

Raito and I had to perform a speech. How fun that was for me, if you can catch the sarcasm. Time kept going on, revealing the hidden message in the notes of the dead criminals (L, Did you know that Shinigami love apples?) and my theory of trying to pull a confession out of Raito by adding an extra message in a small café off campus. The explosive tennis match. The introduction of Raito on to the task force.

But you know all this. You know from the papers and the documents on that time, and I do not care to waste my breath explaining the past. No, what is important is right before I was cursed- or one might say blessed. When life suddenly became interesting in the task force, and I almost had Yagami Raito in an electric chair. I had just began accusing Raito to his face once again of being Kira, if I remember correctly. Light had exploded, passion in his voice and his teeth gritted. "Ryuzaki, if you suspect me that much, then put me in a holding cell! I can't exactly do anything as Kira if I am in there, can I?"

His act was so convincing, and it makes me chuckle now to think that I saw right through his precious little charade. I remember so clearly how I had made the boy sit for thirteen days in that cell, refusing to believe that I had been wrong. Of course, it was longer than thirteen days I had him in that cell, but it was thirteen days before I had lost the innocence. Before my eyes became unveiled and I had uncovered the Death Note. Frustrated by a lack of response to the confinement that Raito was in, I showed an unusual burst of emotion by banging my fist on the table. "Damn it! Not one thing has that boy done since the seventh day! He is Kira, I know he is! And yet, the killings haven't stopped, Amane Misa is confined; The Deputy Director is confined, and _still_ no peep from him! Matsuda, watch the monitors closely, I'm going for a walk."

All eyes were on me at my unusual behavior, I remember, and yet I could care less at the time. Normally walking would be out of the question and going outside even more preposterous, but my usual thinking methods had come up short and I figured fresh air might do me good. "Yagami-kun has barely said a word since that seventh day," I mused so myself as I slipped out of the door and into the nearby woods, barefoot and ignoring the uncomfortable feeling of rocks underneath my feet. "His eyes look different, his mannerisms no longer stoic or seeming like he is being defiant. One thinks Yagami Raito seems completely different."

I began to chew on my fingernail, walking slowly with my eyes on the trees, though not really focusing on anything but my thoughts. "Maybe Kira is a moving being that can possess people, and has left Yagami Raito as he sees the boy is in confinement. It would make sense, since the Yagami boy is no longer guarded or paranoid. I wonder…"

Before I really had a chance to react, I was falling. I landed hard on my elbow and groaned as pain shot up my arm. "That's going to bruise…"

Cradling my arm and rubbing my elbow with my other hand, I bent my legs so I could see what I had tripped over. All thoughts of the pain were instantly dissipated as that ravenous lion named Curiosity came out again, roaring in my mind. Sticking out of the ground by only about 15 centimeters was the corner of a notebook. "Interesting… why would someone bury a notebook?"

My thoughts instantly returned to Yagami Raito and I felt my heart drop to my stomach, chills going down my spine. "Is… Could this be an account of the murders?"

I got up and sat in my usual crouch, eyeing the dirt around the protruding corner of the notebook. It looked soft, displaced- someone had put it there recently. Or, my thoughts at the time, Yagami Raito had put it there recently. My thoughts were interrupted by a chuckle. "Hyuk, hyuk, hyuk. No wonder you're the world's greatest detective, L. You come out to think and _trip_ over evidence."

My eyes focused on the source of the voice and I refrained from gasping. Ryuk was what I saw. That damned Shinigami, who told me later that he was only in the human world out of boredom. But I digress; back to my enlightenment. "A Shinigami… So you are real… I had thrown the thought around but I never really suspected…"

Ryuk chuckled again, twisting oddly and smiling an eerie smile towards me. "Yes. I'm a Shinigami… You wouldn't happen to have any apples, would you?"

I almost laughed as I grasped the book between my thumb and forefinger. Wiggling it, it came out of the ground easily. I silently thanked the rain we'd been getting recently. "No, I apologize. Shinigami, why can I see you?"

"Hyuk, hyuk, hyuk. Call me Ryuk. You touched the Death Note, so you can see me. You're the only one, though."

"Interesting… What is this… 'Death Note' for?"

I held the book between my thumb and forefinger again, dangling it in front of my face. Death Note was sprawled in messy handwriting across the front, the cover not of any material I knew of. How it had fascinated me in this moment. Ryuk shrugged simply. "Open the book. I wrote the rules in."

I slowly opened the book slowly, barely able to contain my awe. I almost dropped it when the first sentence popped out at me. _The person whose name is written in this note shall die._

I gulped slightly, my brain whirring. _This is what Yagami Raito was using? It brings new meaning to the saying, "The pen is mightier than the sword."_ But that cursed lion of curiosity reared it's ugly head again, and I read on, carefully inspecting and remembering each rule. In the back, was the 13 day rule. "Ryuk… This last rule is in a different handwriting…"

Ryuk laughed again, nodding his head. "It's fake. Ignore it."

It dimly struck me as ironic how I had been talking to a supernatural being, holding an otherworldly murder weapon in my hands, and suddenly been granted instant power; and I was more worried about how the handwriting in the Death Note looked. I let out a small laugh and looked up at the Shinigami. "I think I just might keep this to myself…"

Ryuk shrugged, looking up at the trees. "Try it out… Lawliett."

I sighed, standing up and stowing the notebook safely into my large pocket. "Ryuk, it's L. Don't call me by my true name, please."

Ryuk shrugged again, his wings flapping as he rose a few feet off of the ground. "You aren't going to try it, L?"

I smiled slightly towards him, my throbbing arm a distant memory and a near manic glee filling me. "Patience, Ryuk. There's plenty of time for that… when everyone is gone."


End file.
